3 posts tagged “pittsburgh”
Here in Pittsburgh we get excited about all kinds of stuff. One of these things are GINGER SNAPS!
CAN YOU FEEL THE EXCITEMENT?!
It's no secret that I've been feeling altogether restless lately, but I'm not doing a very good job of leaving my apartment unless I have to. What's the point of living in the Big City if I refuse to explore it?
I mused over this to Scruffy, so he decided to evoke a smile from me. It worked!
Then I got invited to a cook-out that was being thrown by friends of mine whom I haven't seen in literally years. I tried to beg myself not to go because there'll be tons of people I don't know and I've been fumbling over my words so much anymore that I'm sure I appear to be socially retarded. But, whatever happened to me being a girl of action? Even if I have to force myself to get back to that point, it's imperative that I return.
Now the trick is finding where the shindig is. At the very least, I am dressed up nice, which is a good boost for anybody. All I need is a Queen of England hat.
{I have no clue what this picture is all about. The automatic timer surprised me.}
I have no clue why I got it into my pretty little head a month ago that I wanted to go to the zoo. As in, I needed to see a collection of animals, and I wouldn't accept defeat. This fact is awfully strange; while I like animals, I'm not exactly an animal person. Things with big teeth generally scare me -- so badly and visibly, in fact, that once when I was feeding a dolphin at Sea World, the damn sea mammal closed its mouth and waited patiently until I had calmed down1.
I'm so glad I had the idea to visit the zoo, even though PaintmePretty and I got horribly lost on the way there, and it was
around ninety degrees for most of the day. Luckily for us, all the field trips were
departing just as we arrived, so we were able to enjoy the sights pretty much undisturbed.
Bower called me around 1:30, and I think I ended up having the most bizarre phone conversation ever. It ceased with me half-shouting "Uh, okay. But, dude -- TIGERS! There's TIGERS! I gotta go!" before I promptly hung up on him.
Needless to say, I throughly enjoyed the tigers. They were one of the first things I ran into (as the opening area of the Pittsburgh Zoo is the "Asian Forest"), and I was simply floored that I was so close to real-life tigers. They act a surprising much like housecats, padding around and playfully wrestling with one another. I forgot for a few seconds that they were vicious predators and was instead taken in my their overwhelming cuteness.
The next section was the "African Savannah". I wasn't expecting to turn a corner and run directly into a rhinoceros, but there it was, happily munching on some hay. After I got over the shock of the rhinoceros, I moved on to the zebras and ostriches. After them came the elephants. I am (and probably always will be) a sucker for elephants; they're so uniquely swell. I love them.
The primate house didn't smell great. I saw lemurs. LEMURS, DAMMIT!2 I didn't linger for very long, and quickly moved onto the bears. I thought one was angrily eying me up, but then he made a funny face, so I wasn't quite so frightened.
I went completely nuts in the aquarium. Everything was so beautiful. I think I tried to photograph everything. I couldn't capture the penguins so well since they were moving so fast. Instead of getting frustrated, I just sat back and enjoyed them for a while. I made sure to get plenty of jellyfish pictures (to scare Chris), and I fawned over the sharks and stingrays because I'm that kind of girl.
The polar bears came next. Even though the two brothers were still juveniles, they were huge. And so adorable. I wanted to stay overnight in the zoo and cuddle with them. I'm sure there would be plenty of popcorn and gossip at our slumber party and no attacking fidget and eating her face.
There was a peacock hanging out by the polar bears. Kendra and I noticed him, and I got down on the ground to take pictures. She talked to him (and named him Frederick), and when we went to leave, he followed us for a little bit. Randomly throughout the rest of the day, we'd see (or hear) him around. Peacocks are awesome!
I got to pet a kangaroo. They're so soft and fuzzy! Then I met a llama and a camel.
We went through the zoo again and rode the train before we left. I wish I could have stayed longer, but Kendra wore cute but extremely un-sensible shoes. She was hobbling around, and I felt bad seeing her in so much pain. My pity turned to revulsion when she showed off her blisters in the car. Ew.
Famished and exhausted, we discussed grabbing dinner. I suggested the Spice Island Tea House in Oakland, and Kendra was all for it since she had never tried Thai food before. It wasn't very hard to find; I know Oakland like the back of my hand.
Spice Island Tea House is so awesome that I was considering taking a trip to Pittsburgh earlier in the week just to eat there. Their food is amazing, and the atmosphere is unlike anywhere else. We both had fresh-brewed, iced jasmine tea. I ordered my favorite, Pad Thai, and Kendra got various vegetables drowning in ginger sauce. Over dinner, we repeatedly lamented that there isn't a place half as cool as Spice Island Tea House anywhere near New Castle.
Friday was the best day I had in a very long time. When I wasn't excitedly running around like a five-year-old, I was amazed by all the incredible things the world has to offer. I had the opportunity to spend it with one of the coolest girls I know. And I finished the day by eating some of the most marvelous food in the galaxy. It makes me sad that it's not Friday anymore.
1True story.
2Remember the lemur flyers?
I'm so glad I had the idea to visit the zoo, even though PaintmePretty and I got horribly lost on the way there, and it was
Bower called me around 1:30, and I think I ended up having the most bizarre phone conversation ever. It ceased with me half-shouting "Uh, okay. But, dude -- TIGERS! There's TIGERS! I gotta go!" before I promptly hung up on him.
Needless to say, I throughly enjoyed the tigers. They were one of the first things I ran into (as the opening area of the Pittsburgh Zoo is the "Asian Forest"), and I was simply floored that I was so close to real-life tigers. They act a surprising much like housecats, padding around and playfully wrestling with one another. I forgot for a few seconds that they were vicious predators and was instead taken in my their overwhelming cuteness.
The next section was the "African Savannah". I wasn't expecting to turn a corner and run directly into a rhinoceros, but there it was, happily munching on some hay. After I got over the shock of the rhinoceros, I moved on to the zebras and ostriches. After them came the elephants. I am (and probably always will be) a sucker for elephants; they're so uniquely swell. I love them.
The primate house didn't smell great. I saw lemurs. LEMURS, DAMMIT!2 I didn't linger for very long, and quickly moved onto the bears. I thought one was angrily eying me up, but then he made a funny face, so I wasn't quite so frightened.
I went completely nuts in the aquarium. Everything was so beautiful. I think I tried to photograph everything. I couldn't capture the penguins so well since they were moving so fast. Instead of getting frustrated, I just sat back and enjoyed them for a while. I made sure to get plenty of jellyfish pictures (to scare Chris), and I fawned over the sharks and stingrays because I'm that kind of girl.
The polar bears came next. Even though the two brothers were still juveniles, they were huge. And so adorable. I wanted to stay overnight in the zoo and cuddle with them. I'm sure there would be plenty of popcorn and gossip at our slumber party and no attacking fidget and eating her face.
There was a peacock hanging out by the polar bears. Kendra and I noticed him, and I got down on the ground to take pictures. She talked to him (and named him Frederick), and when we went to leave, he followed us for a little bit. Randomly throughout the rest of the day, we'd see (or hear) him around. Peacocks are awesome!
I got to pet a kangaroo. They're so soft and fuzzy! Then I met a llama and a camel.
We went through the zoo again and rode the train before we left. I wish I could have stayed longer, but Kendra wore cute but extremely un-sensible shoes. She was hobbling around, and I felt bad seeing her in so much pain. My pity turned to revulsion when she showed off her blisters in the car. Ew.
Famished and exhausted, we discussed grabbing dinner. I suggested the Spice Island Tea House in Oakland, and Kendra was all for it since she had never tried Thai food before. It wasn't very hard to find; I know Oakland like the back of my hand.
Spice Island Tea House is so awesome that I was considering taking a trip to Pittsburgh earlier in the week just to eat there. Their food is amazing, and the atmosphere is unlike anywhere else. We both had fresh-brewed, iced jasmine tea. I ordered my favorite, Pad Thai, and Kendra got various vegetables drowning in ginger sauce. Over dinner, we repeatedly lamented that there isn't a place half as cool as Spice Island Tea House anywhere near New Castle.
Friday was the best day I had in a very long time. When I wasn't excitedly running around like a five-year-old, I was amazed by all the incredible things the world has to offer. I had the opportunity to spend it with one of the coolest girls I know. And I finished the day by eating some of the most marvelous food in the galaxy. It makes me sad that it's not Friday anymore.
1True story.
2Remember the lemur flyers?
